


Rabbit

by MemoriesofMiltia



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-04
Packaged: 2019-03-27 01:34:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13870266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MemoriesofMiltia/pseuds/MemoriesofMiltia
Summary: How Moira and Mercy first met, and how Moira got her first pet rabbit.





	Rabbit

**Author's Note:**

> Written for @thealex-files for the ffexchange this year!

Despite what some people might think, Moira and Mercy did not first meet when Overwatch and Blackwatch recruited them, Mercy full of doubts about the organization and Moira brimming with ambition. Neither did they first meet when Overwatch was being investigated, when all that was black and murky in it came to light, and everyone found out that Moira had been working for them, for good and ill. Rather, they first met when they were young and still studying, their lives full of promise and their hearts full of dreams of how they might help or change mankind.

Ordinarily, they might not have met, since Moira was still living in Ireland, and Switzerland had more than its fair share of good schools, but Mercy wanted to broaden her horizons. You can’t be a good medical doctor in a war-torn world if you don’t understand all the backgrounds your patients come from, along with whatever viewpoints, ideas, beliefs, and tools they might have. So, Mercy traveled to Ireland as an exchange student (the first of many trips to new places), and the school placed her in the same dorm room as Moira O’Deorain.

Surprisingly (or perhaps not), Moira was even more unfriendly in her youth, so when Angela knocked on the door to the room they would now share together, no one opened it for her. Instead, all she heard was a gruff woman’s voice asking who was there, and when Angela answered, with a bit of uncertainty in her voice, that she was the new exchange student, Angela Ziegler, she heard the woman sigh heavily, like she was about to be burdened by a newly-born infant.

“Come in, then.” Angela waited for a moment, just to be polite and just in case she really was misjudging this woman, but once that moment was over and it was clear that no one was going to open the door for her, she opened it and dragged her heavy blue suitcase into the room. Thankfully, while the room wasn’t messy, it was-if one wanted to put a positive spin on it-minimalist. Other than the bunk bed in the far left corner, the bookshelf opposite it in the far right corner, the set of drawers on the left wall, below the bed, and the long, polished steel table opposite it that held a computer, a few notebooks, and what looked like some mechanical experiment, there was nothing else in the room. No posters, no figurines, no postcards from home tacked up on the wall, nothing to indicate that someone actually enjoyed their life and had interests beyond whatever was on their table.

As Angela came in and examined the room, Moira, who’d been working at her desk, as always, actually looked up from whatever she was reading on her computer so that she could examine Angela in turn, but she didn’t get up from her seat, offer to help Angela with her suitcase, or even give her a smile out of pure politeness. Instead, she merely looked at Angela like she was a piece of rotting cheese. “I hope you enjoy your stay and whatever you can manage to get out of it.” She started, her voice as cold and unfriendly as the look in her eyes. “You may put up whatever you wish in the room, but if you change the way the books are organized or touch whatever I’m working on, I will create a bot solely to spam you with things you find unpleasant or unsettling. Have I made myself clear?”

“C-ugh-Crystal.” Angela grunted, glaring as she finished dragging her suitcase to the southern side of the bed. As she continued, she stretched her aching muscles, wondering if the office wasn’t lying to her when they said that this was the only room not already taken up by two people. “I suppose a ‘nice to meet you’ is beneath you. And, if a bot does start harassing me, I can simply tell the administration about your threat. They’ll know it was you and kick you out.”

“Unless they can find any proof that I made the bot.” Moira countered. “A hypothesis can only be proven or disproven with data and research. And I could decide to do something different. My warning and potential negative reaction are all that matters. What time do you go to bed?”

“I tend to fall asleep around eleven.” Angela answered, her voice pure poison. “What, will that get in the way of your studies, too?”

“My research,” Moira corrected, “and yes, it will. I don’t know how long you’ve been in college, but I can assure you that it’s nearly impossible to pass while also keeping up with your own research without working long into the night. Or, in the worst case scenario, without sleeping at all. If you have an early bedtime, then that means I will actually have to be quiet, which will hamper or even prevent me from continuing on with certain parts of my research. The least you could do is apologize.”

“Really? Then I’m so terribly sorry, your majesty.” Angela drawled, her voice dripping with sarcasm, but while Moira noticed, she didn’t react to it. At least, not in any way that Angela was able to notice. “But you should apologize to me, too. I’m an early bird, so if you are working late and sleeping in, that will impact my work as well. You’re not the only one doing personal research.”

“On the contrary. There’s no need for me to apologize at all.” Moira replied, and this time, a cold sneer that screamed that she had the high ground, that she was in the right graced her face, which only soured Angela’s expression even more. “I may work late into the night, but I’m usually up by the crack of dawn. Time and scientific progress waits for no one, after all. Perhaps we’ll be able to work together and pool our knowledge and discoveries together.”

“I’d prefer we didn’t.” Angela replied, her voice a hundred and twenty degrees below zero, as she bent down, opened up her suitcase, and started unpacking her clothes. “I don’t know what you’re working on at the moment, but I have no interest in helping you, and I don’t want your help either. You’ve been nothing but rude and condescending since I came here. You would take all the time I spent researching or working on new medical ideas to better people’s lives and make it taste like sour milk. I might change my mind if you ever change. But, at the moment, I think it’s best that we both just avoid each other’s research. It’ll be torture enough just sharing a room with you normally.” As Angela spoke, she finished unpacking her clothes and moved on to the few personal items she’d brought with her-a picture of her parents went on top of the dresser, she put the few books she had into the bookshelf, organizing it so that it wouldn’t interfere with Moira’s system, and a poster of a singer she admired called Reborn Red was hung up right beside the bed-and Moira couldn’t help but watch her, a thoughtful, lukewarm expression on her face.

It wasn’t that she really liked this woman (at this stage in her life, Moira didn’t really like anyone), but she seemed more intelligent and interested in actually making new innovations compared to everyone else on campus she had met. It would be a complete waste if she couldn’t see what she was working on, both for her and her new roommate. Plus, it was..refreshing to be insulted and rejected this early into a conversation. Most people tried to hide the fact that they were angry out of politeness or were too intimidated to confront her, so this woman’s quick, genuinely negative reaction filled Moira with some sense of relief and curiosity.

So, as Angela pulled out her laptop and sat down on the bottom bunk of the bed, Moira spoke up again, and while the expression on her face hadn’t changed, the tone of her voice was a few degrees warmer.

“Alright, then. If that’s the way you feel about me, I’ll respect your wishes. I do think that it would be best if we rotated our time at the table every two hours, though, if that’s alright with you. One person can’t hog up the whole table during the day while we’re both in here and awake.”

“Alright.” Angela replied, opening up her laptop. “That sounds perfectly fine with me, so long as you don’t leave any traps on the table for me.”

“There’s no need to worry about that. I’m not going to get in the way of your scientific discoveries, whatever they may be.” Moira gave Angela a rare, cold, but well-meaning smile, but she just shot a nasty glare back at her in return. “What is your name, though? We’ve done all this squabbling, but we haven’t introduced ourselves yet.”

“I’m Angela Ziegler. Who are you?”

“My name is Moira O’Deorain. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance.” Moira swiveled around in her chair and offered Angela a hand, still smiling. For a few moments, Angela just eyed her warily, ready for a fight or a trick, since Moira had already shown that she was a woman who usually didn’t care about social niceties, but, eventually, she took Moira’s hand and gave it a polite shake.

“You haven’t been acting very pleased, Moira.”

“I apologize for that, Angela.” Moira replied, though there was only a drop of actual remorse in her tone, and Angela herself didn’t look like she completely believed her. “I admit, I’m not the easiest person to get along with, but I do have a bad habit of being..overly protective and defensive of my work and my working area. Especially with new people. Most people in this college care nothing for science or new discoveries. They’re all more worried about starting the next Omnic Crisis than unraveling the truths of the universe. But I get the feeling that you’re different, if you’re willing to devote your own personal time to research and medical innovations. I’m sure we’ll at least be on agreeable terms before the semester is over.”

“Maybe,” Angela said, though both her tone and expression implied that she thought that was as likely as the moon sprouting wings, “but if you’re trying to butter me up, it’s not working. I’m not going to forgive you for your rude behavior, either. Just because you’ve run into a few idiots doesn’t mean you get to threaten other people with bots, especially when you don’t even know whether or not that person is a fool. If you’re truly sorry, than I hope to see that in actions, not just words that are more flimsy than wet cardboard.”

“Alright, then.” Moira replied. “I don’t expect you to instantly forgive me, if at all, but I will do my best to break my bad habits for the both of us, Angela. Though I’m not trying to butter you up either.” At this little comment, Angela finally gave Moira a smile. A sly and sardonic smile, but a smile nonetheless.

“Do you really expect me to believe that someone as cold as you dishes out compliments like that on a regular basis?”

“Of course not, and nor did I ever say that I complimented people easily.” Moira replied, almost snapping. “But that’s all the more reason for you to believe my opinions about you, if I’m not quick to give other people praise or positive opinions.”

“Perhaps.” Angela replied, as she started to turn her attention back to her laptop. “I’ll have to observe you a little bit more to be sure. But it would be nice if you did compliment people more often. Or, at the very least, didn’t threaten them the moment you met them. That would at least be a step in the right direction.”

“Maybe. I’ll see what I can do about that.” Moira said, the smile slowly draining from her face. Since it seemed like the conversation had come to an end and Angela was more interested in whatever she was doing on her laptop, Moira turned back to the table, though she couldn’t stop thinking about how to get on Angela’s good side either, for reasons both professional and personal.

Since they both shared a few classes together, (Literature, a baking class, and a music appreciation course), Angela was able to observe Moira for the next few months, and Moira forced herself to act like she was trying to be nicer to people, which was a difficult role to play, and not just because it made her internally scream and gnash her teeth every time she did. It was a difficult role to play without looking fake-if you acted like you’d completely turned over a new leaf overnight for no reason, people would be even more suspicious and untrustworthy of you, and if you didn’t act nice enough, no one would notice or even believe that you had changed or were trying to. It was a hard balancing act to pull off, even for Moira, who was currently taking her sixth acting class, and the fact that she could always feel Angela scrutinizing her during classes made her feel like someone was shining a light in her eyes while she was trying to paint an important portrait.

If she messed up and snapped at someone without thinking about it, Angela would glare at her, which would equal out to lost progress and a cold experience back in their dorm room. If she messed up in the other direction by being too kind to someone, Angela would know she was faking, which would lead to more glares, lost progress, and cold conversations. It might not have been so bad if she could have been her normal cold, independent self when she wasn’t around Angela, but since she had no idea who all of Angela’s friends were or whom she might befriend or talk to in the future, she had to ensure that her cover was never blown by anyone. The only rest she ever got was when Angela was either asleep or out and she could use the table without being interrupted or go on a long walk through the forest surrounding the school, using trails that few people, if any, ever used.

Normally, Moira wouldn’t have bothered acting out such a demanding role for what appeared to be a long-term goal, but..putting aside her vast medical and scientific knowledge, Angela seemed to be a fascinating person, one whom Moira couldn’t take her eyes off of. Not that she couldn’t be friendly and sweet with people, like others expected her to be, but she didn’t put up with other people’s shit either, whether they were classmates or teachers, and regardless of whatever negative consequences would be hurled her way. She didn’t just have a first-hand account of this (said account being an amusing day at music appreciation, where some idiot thought that Wagner wasn’t an anti-semitite, though Moira knew that a first-hand account alone wasn’t a good foundation for theories, scientifically speaking), but also accounts and phone videos from other people.

One woman named Hannah Collins claimed that Angela had started a fight with their history teacher who claimed that Omnics had caused their own conflicts and problems because they refused to bend to humanity’s rule and accept that, ultimately, they were tools made by humanity for humanity’s convenience, like a toaster or a microwave (“Do you realize how fucking racist you’re being right now?!” Angela had yelled.), even though this nearly led to Angela’s expulsion by the same professor, who claimed that Angela was being disrespectful and disruptive in his course. The only reason she wasn’t kicked out was because all of the other students in the class came forward with video evidence that showed the truth, and, for some reason, the professor still hadn’t been fired, a fact which boiled the blood of every non-racist student who was involved or knew of the incident, including Moira’s.

The fact that there was some fool who preferred to cling to his racist beliefs instead of accepting the fact that Omnics were people and all the interesting scientific implications that came with that (Humanity had somehow, without meaning to, developed consciousness that was equal to theirs, and sometimes even above it! How? Could they dissect Omnics in order to find the piece of them that gave them sentience, that gave them consciousness, and what implications did that have for Humanity’s sentience? Could Humanity’s sentience be linked to a single item as well? Or was it the sum of the whole, the combination of parts that allowed both Omnics and Humans their elevated levels of intelligence and sentience?) was bad enough, but the fact that he had somehow been made a professor and almost kicked out her beloved Angela (whether or not the emotions she carried for Angela were what was commonly known as love was unknown, but, at this point, Moira had admitted to herself that, even though Angela didn’t like her inner core and didn’t trust her enough to work together with her at their table, she cared about Angela enough to try to be with her as much as she could, to try to act like a person she approved of so that they could spend more positive time together watching comedy videos and laughing, testing different baking recipes on each other, and showing the other interesting videos they found, some animal-related and some not, even if they didn’t do any coursework or scientific research together.) was even worse.

Two weeks after she’d heard the story, the professor in question accidentally showed his class a slide in his presentation that contained child pornography, which led to him being fired by the school and a lengthy criminal investigation that wasn’t able to turn up anything else, though the police did hold him in jail for a few days for questioning. No one pinned anything on Moira, and if Angela knew or suspected anything, she didn’t act like it. Nor was she really upset by the whole thing. For about a week, she was practically a giddy dove gliding on a warm, gentle breeze, which only made Moira genuinely smile, not only because she’d been the cause of Angela’s happiness, but also because Angela was, without knowing it, proving that she had a bit of a cold, cruel streak to her as well, if she relished the arrest and expulsion of a man who, while horrid and scientifically backwards, was innocent of the child pornography charges. There were facets to Angela, layers to her, all of which fascinated Moira and made her heart feel warmer than the surface of Venus. If it meant being close to her, then putting on a different, excruciating role was worth it, even if she did fail sometimes, and even if it did mean internally yelling while she was kinder and friendlier towards idiots in and out of her classes than she would normally be.

After a few months of this, though, Moira had mostly gotten used to the role, which equaled out to more shimmering, proud smiles from Angela that practically screamed, “See? I knew you could be nicer!”, when no one else was watching, along with other unforeseen, positive consequences. While Moira would never admit it, since doing so would lead to too many negative consequences and render all the hard work she’d done null and void, there was some pleasure to be had from pretending to be perfectly polite and friendly to idiots and bastards, secretly knowing that you could make them pay for their actions with very little, if any, suspicion drawn your way. Now that people thought that she had indeed turned over a new leaf, very few people were quick to blame Moira for things or think unkindly towards her, and the ridiculous amount of power that gave her amazed her to no end. Some part of her wondered how many people, if any, would suspect or blame her if she killed her boring mathematics professor. There were so many wonderful new findings to be had from this performance that, even if Angela hadn’t noticed or finally believed that she’d made a change in the right direction, Moira still would have been pleased with the results of her hard work.

However, Angela had noticed, and while she couldn’t completely shove away the negative feelings she had towards Moira or their poisonous first encounter, she was more than proud of how far her roommate had come, despite all the bumps in the road she’d seen. From her point of view, Moira still hadn’t quite managed to squeeze the smug, proud tone out of her voice, but it seemed that she genuinely meant well, especially when she actually complimented people in class, helped them out with problems when they asked her for advice (even though, in the past, she would have just given them a glare that suggested they were complete morons if they couldn’t figure something this simple out and told them to ask the professor for help, since they were better at explaining things than she was), and didn’t look like a bored tyrant surrounded by idiotic subjects when other, dimmer students asked a question that was either inane or had already been answered by the professor. She still wasn’t ready to share their table together (she found it far more enjoyable and soothing to research things and make medical-related prototypes by herself than with someone else joining her, especially since so many people liked her and demanded her attention throughout the day.), but, while Moira was still perfecting her act, she’d genuinely enjoyed spending some time with her. 

Of course, it was tiring and annoying when Moira acted like a shithead to someone yet again, especially since Angela always felt compelled to point out Moira’s mistakes and explain exactly what she should do next time if she didn’t want to be such a jerk (if anyone thought that Angela didn’t have faults when she was younger, they were wrong), but that just made it feel even more rewarding when Moira actually got her act together and didn’t treat people like they were dumber than a murder of crows, including herself, which made it even easier to hang out with her whenever they had some spare time together. Not that they ever did anything outside their room, and, unbeknownst to Angela, Moira always had to hold her tongue when they were watching a film that got something scientifically wrong, but Angela still enjoyed herself and felt proud of Moira’s accomplishments. It helped that, even on days when she was more unpalatable than a glass of ale, Moira actually had a good sense of humor, which was probably only helped and encouraged by her acting classes. Just because Angela knew it was wrong didn’t mean that she could always stop herself from laughing at Moira’s impressions of some of the idiots she dealt with and accidentally snapped at, especially if she herself didn’t like the person in question for one reason or another.

But, being a med student, she knew just how easy it was for people to fall off the wagon, no matter how good their intentions were. So, one chilly April night, Moira walked into their room after a long day and, thinking that she was alone, due to the probability of Angela coming home before her, turned on the light, only to be greeted by a cacophony of noisemakers blown via one huge connecting device by Angela, who seemed to have made the ridiculous instrument solely for this moment. As she stopped in her tracks, looking like a brainless, baffled crow as she tried to assess the situation, confetti rained down from the five now-open balls that Angela had installed on the ceiling earlier, and as they landed upon Moira’s shoulders and mixed in with her hair, she finally registered that, between the now-shorter table and the bookcase, there was a medium-sized black bunny in a rabbit hutch that anybunny would love right beside Angela, whose glimmering face actually matched her name, for once.

“Surprise!” She cried, “Happy Birthday, Moira!”

“Angela?” Moira asked, sounding like she was just starting to wake up from a long nap. “What is-how did you figure out what my birthday was?”

“That wasn’t terribly difficult. I merely had to look at some of your online records and accounts. You, of all people, should know by now that if you don’t want others to discover something, you shouldn’t put it up online.” Angela teased, her face still shining as she wrapped her arms behind her back. “Come in, though! Come in! I hope you like rabbits.”

“I actually don’t know.” Moira replied, still dazed as she walked into the room and knelt down by the rabbit hutch, watching it as it took a drink of water, before smiling at it. “But this one does look cute, don’t they? I think we’ll get along just fine. Do they have a name?”

“Not yet. You can name her, if you want.” Angela replied, though she didn’t say just how adorable Moira looked at the moment. She didn’t seem the type to gush over animals, and yet, here she was, with a face that was practically oozing sugar. “But I’ll only let you keep her on one condition.”

“What?” Moira asked, finally looking up at her roommate. “I’m pretty sure that birthday presents are supposed to be given without the giver asking for anything in return.”

“Normally, I’d agree with you,” said Angela, “but unusual people call for unusual situations. Besides, I’m sure my condition won’t be difficult to fulfill anyway.”

“There’s no way for me to know one way or the other unless you tell me.” Moira replied, her expression chilling in the face of new knowledge that she might be denied both a gift from a woman she cared about (said gift carrying more emotional significance when one considered the fact that no one besides her parents had given her a birthday gift in years) and a cute, bouncing bunny, whom she was growing more and more attached to with every passing minute.

“I know that in science, you sometimes have to experiment on animals, be they rats or rabbits, and I know how caught up you can get in your work sometimes, Moira. I’m not sure sometimes whether or not you would try to combine Omnic parts with animals ones without thinking about it so that you could try to learn something about the development of Omnic consciousness. So, if I give you this bunny, you have to swear upon the very name and practice of science itself that you’ll never harm or experiment upon her, no matter how tempting it might be sometimes. Other rabbits in labs are fair game. But I want you to remember that not everything in life is about scientific discoveries or uncovering something new and exciting, regardless of the costs to your Human or animal relationships. Can you do that?” For a few moments, Moira didn’t reply. Instead, she quietly watched the rabbit, a thoughtful, warm expression on her face. When she did answer, her voice was subdued and had none of it’s usual smugness.

“Yes, I think I’ll be able to do that. I vow, upon the name and practice of science, that I shall never hurt or experiment upon this bunny. I’ll always remember the value of both my Human and animal relationships. Thank you, Angela. This truly does mean a lot to me. I know I haven’t always been kind, so I truly am glad that you’ve stuck with me thought it all. I’ve always said that you’re a wonderful, special person that everyone else should keep their eyes on. I think this just proves my point.”

“Maybe. But I think being able to make that vow really shows how far you’ve come as a person. I wasn’t the one who had to learn how to balance my intellect with my social skills. You were, and I think you’ve done marvelously well. So, congratulations, Moira.” Angela replied, the smile stuck to her face. “Can you go out, though? I’m buying you dinner tonight at whatever place you want.” She continued, putting her noisemaker down on the table.

“Now, you should know better than to make offers like that, Angela.” Moira smirked, her tone teasing, as she stood up and stretched. “I might ask you to take me to the most expensive place I can think of.”

“Now, what did I just say about how proud I was of you improving upon your social skills?” Angela asked, though both her tone and the grin on her face showed that she was just going along with the joke, as she opened the door.

“Don’t worry.” Moira laughed as she started to walk out of the room. “I wouldn’t do that to one of my friends. At least, I don’t want to do that to you right now.”

“I suppose I should feel lucky.” Angela replied, her smile becoming a bit sardonic for a moment until she noticed something on Moira’s shoulder and stopped her from leaving the room. “Oh, hang on. You’ve still got confetti on your shoulders.” Quickly, she brushed the little flakes of paper off Moira’s shoulders, and while they looked beautiful as they drifted to the ground, Moira had to force herself not to relax into Angela’s warm hand, which was far more interesting, and even though it was only on her for a few moments, it felt like a Goddess with warm lips, outside of science, and yet, wanting to be understood by it, had kissed her shoulders, leaving a warm impression. It took every fiber of her being to calm down, to focus so that she could act like a semi-normal person and walk out of the room when Angela got out of her way.

“Thank you.” She said, as calmly as she could, though she felt like she’d drunk one glass of wine too many.

“You’re welcome.” Angela replied, turning off the light and closing the door behind her as she stepped out into the hall with Moira. “So, what will you name the rabbit?”

“I’m not sure. Perhaps I’ll name it after you. ” Moira replied, not sure herself if she was really kidding, as they started to walk out of the building and into the night.


End file.
